This trippy orb isn't the result of a misspent youth. Instead, it's the fruits of complex computer simulations that use the speed of seismic waves from earthquakes to visualise the existence of subterranean structures far beneath our planet's surface. Read more >

Scientists looking at Earthshine reflected from the moon have concluded that, indeed, there is life on our planet. Though the result may be obvious, the findings can help in the search for life on other worlds.v

Zachory Berta says that "GJ1214b is like no planet we know of." Like Berta, part of a team at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics lead by David Charbonneau, his colleagues were surprised when they discovered that this planet is made mostly of water.

Astronomers have found two more new planets orbiting binary stars: Kepler-34b and Kepler-35b. Their discovery, which follows the original Tatooine discovery back in September 2011, is quite important: now we know there are millions of planets orbiting binary stars.

The possibility of alien life has captivated our imaginations for generations. Now that possibility just got a big boost as Kepler's managed to find and confirm a potentially Earth-like planet. It's just 600 light years away and occupies that magic 'habitable zone' around its star, like the Earth does around the sun.